Ocean Waves & Boho Craze: Guest Post by Raven

Aloha, everyone! Today we are lucky enough to welcome someone who is not only outwardly beautiful but also harbors a beautiful heart and soul: the absolutely wonderful Raven. As founder of the Ocean Lovers' Society on campus, Raven has never ceased to amaze me with her passion and love for the ocean. But the girl has a rocking style, too, and she's kind enough to shed some light on her closet choices in this post. So, Raven, take it away!

Our planet is a delicate, beautiful, and precious place. In a time such as this, one of the most important things we must keep in mind is our impact on the health of our home. A place that I like to focus on protecting is our oceans. The truth is, our ocean is the primary source of life on the planet. Not only does it provide food, materials, and other natural resources but most of the oxygen we breathe. To neglect a place so vital to our life on earth will cause us face huge consequences in our future.

I do my best to incorporate my passions into my everyday life, and especially into my wardrobe. I believe that your style is the best way to express your interests. The way you present yourself through your clothing says a lot about you, and gives you a great opportunity to communicate what you’re passionate about to the world around you. I love the freedom fashion gives me that allows me to (quite literally) wear my heart on my sleeve. Inspired by a combination of bohemian and surfer style, I try to balance my wardrobe between a fun and comfortable look while also maintaining a whimsical aura. When you think of what a mermaid would wear if she were to live on land, your visuals are most likely parallel to my favorite looks. Not only does it reflect the mood of the sea but also my own personality. I try to project a sense of tranquility but also neatness when putting an outfit together.

All while paying attention to the “mood” of style, I tend to be drawn to rich colors. In the photo above, I have am wearing a rich red crop top with threads that weave in a variety of beautiful bright colors. The piece is composed of 100% organic cotton. Just as I believe it is important to pay attention to the materials that enter your body and its effect on you and your environment, it is just as important to be aware of the materials that you place onto your body. The textiles used to create the clothes we were could have either a negative or positive effect on the earth, so it is very important to refrain from non-sustainable material. However, I think we can all agree that with many mass production clothing companies thriving on sales reaching millions it is difficult to find clothing following these guidelines. My hope for the future is that we are able to find sustainable material like organic cotton and hemp as a more common textile in clothing stores.

Life is better in a bikini! The outfit above is one of my favorites, featuring loose boyfriend jeans and my favorite cardigan by Billabong. This is a look that is perfect for an evening by the water, providing comfort and warmth. I’ve also chosen a black bikini top to add to the comfort and color foundation to allow the colors in my jewelry and cardigan to pop. I’ve accessorized this look with earrings made from recycled threads and turquoise as well as a body chain with turquoise stones as well. I like to play around with jewelry in my everyday fashion and find myself wearing some pretty extravagant pieces. Incorporating the fun with jewelry inspired by bohemian style into a more laid back surfer style is what I usually go for in a casual outfit. I especially love jewelry that comes from natural material. Some that I own are made from starfish, sea shells, coffee beans, and roots.

I think the ultimate victory in fashion is gaining a sense of self. As you grow to become more aware of who you are, your style is going to change as your interests shift. What a beautiful thing to know that you are so free to express! When you find something you love, expressing it through the way you dress can be one of the most entertaining and flexible ways to do it. Let the colors you love so much speak through your apparel. I love to translate the sapphire blue of a calm ocean sunset through stones from the earth of that color and express the soft flow of each wave with a white fringed dress. Keeping an eye open to how your actions on all scales affect the planet we live on is so important. Wouldn’t you love to enjoy a stunning blue ocean without excess oil and trash? Appreciate the world around you, and protect it.

~Raven

HC 2015: Last Time Coming Home?

Last week was a high-intensive week of school, so homecoming was a huge relief. I'm stuck between two thoughts when it comes to school dances. Let's be honest...I don't particularly love being in a gym full of teenagers high on hormones and adrenaline, but I really do enjoy these opportunities to dress up, go out, and dance, since it isn't something I do often. I thought it would be nice to share what my friends and I wore to Homecoming for today's post. I say it again later in the post, but this was actually NOT the dress I was planning on wearing.

I researched a little bit about the history of Homecoming, and I was surprised that it's historically more about the football game and the parade than the dance itself. It's totally the other way around now (Dance>HC Game). The Homecoming tradition officially began in 1910, so this is its 105th anniversary!

I bought this dress THREE hours before the dance!! I had ordered 2 dresses a week before and they were expected to come Saturday morning, but of course...they didn't. Thanks to my mom, we ran out the door and were able to find this in less than an hour.

Although I am upset that the dresses I had planned to choose from did not arrive, I'm still very happy with this dress that I found. It looks purple in the pictures, but it's actually navy blue fabric with purple flowers. It was a basically tea length dress on me (because I'm short), which made it look even more elegant.

DRESS: Eliza J Floral Metallic Jacquard Fit & Flare (Nordstrom)

SHOES: Bally

I chose to wear these black pointed heels that I normally wear for Mock Trial competitions (They're actually my mom's). They matched perfectly with the chic/classy look that I was going for. 

Tabitha wore gold accents to go with her purple metallic bodycon. I really liked how she wore dainty, delicate jewelry rather than putting on something chunky. I know I can't pull off a bodycon, but she can!!

How cute is Diana?! Props to Tabitha for doing the cool knot hairstyle on the back (all those YouTube vids are paying off for her). Diana wore a pink strapless floral dress and wore a bejeweled strawberry necklace to complement the dress.

(Note: The following pictures were taken with an iPhone   -Diana)

If you went to Homecoming, I hope you had lots of fun!! I will say that the music was significantly better than the music from the dances I'd gone to (shoutout to Rachel, most fab ASB Secretary and pictured above)! Thanks to DChao and Tabitha for making this post possible! Have a wonderful week, everyone.

A Not-So Fabricated History

Historical Origin of Brocade/Jacquard

Overtime, both brocade and jacquard have become extremely popular, as it is common to find them in forms of dresses, skirts, blouses, etc. Designers like Dolce & Gabanna design pieces that are inspired by brocade and jacquard. Despite the fact that people use the words brocade and jacquard interchangeably, they do have minute differences. To be completely honest, I still do not fully comprehend that exact differences, even after looking at over ten sources. The historical timeline of brocade was much more intriguing and comprehensive than jacquard, so here is a historical focus on brocade!


Brocade: Byzantine Empire
Brocade is a rich fabric that is primarily woven from silk and often embroidered with silver and gold metallic threads-a prime reason why I love brocade. Historically, brocade was woven by the Byzantines, and typically worn by the wealthiest of society. The Byzantine Empire was the central producer of brocade, and traded with China, who envied the Byzantines' secrets of silk making. Brocade became most notably important during the Italian Renaissance and Middle Ages; silk was a primary fabric produced by Italy. Nobles and royalty paid presumptuous amounts to wear the Italian fabric.

     

Dress: Abercrombie // Cardigan: Hollister // Crossbody Bag: Kate Spade

I mainly love this dress because of the gold and silver metallic fabric. It is a traditional floral-patterned brocade/jacquard dress. I personally think it is fun to wear for any semi-formal event or for a night out. I have also worn this dress to a wedding and a MUN Conference, so I have been able to incorporate it into all different types of events. 

 
My ever-beloved black crossbody! A black crossbody is a staple that can be worn with nearly everything. I love this bag because it is just small enough to carry around without hassle, but just big enough to fit in all my essentials-keys, phone, money, chapstick, etc.

HISTORICAL ORIGIN of TWEED and CORDUROY 

Tweed: Scotland// Corduroy (fustian): Egypt

Tweed is often referred to as an icon of traditional British clothing because of the moisture-resistant and durable fabric. However, tweed first originated from Scotland in the 18th century. Initially, tweed was primarily worn as outwear for outdoor activities, such as shooting and hunting. The material was rough, dull-colored, and hand-woven. Tweed has been worn by the entire social ladder, from nobles to farmers, which makes the fabric a rustic heritage. Corduroy, on the other hand, goes an even greater number of centuries back. Corduroy evolves from the cotton weave known as 'fustian.' Used in 200 AD in Egypt, fustian became more popular in the cotton trade by the 12th century. Fustian was a velvety textile that was sought after by royal Europeans. By the 18th century, fustian became especially popular among schoolmasters, and became adopted into ladies' dresses. It was then that fustian became known as 'corduroy' in England. In French translation, corduroy means the 'cloth of a King' (corde du roi). Even kids began wearing corduroy in the 20th century. Since then, corduroy has gone in and out of style. Luckily, it is in right now! (i love my corduroy pants too)

I actually took this photoshoot directly after my MUN conference on Saturday, so I thought I'd just stay in my clothes and show what I wore. It is definitely western-business attire, so you could possibly find it interesting to wear if you participate in Speech and Debate, Mock Trial, MUN, etc. Tweed and corduroy are great fabrics for business-styles. However, I also own normal corduroy pants and normal tweed jackets, so I have these same fabrics for casual clothing.

    

Bow Flats: Halogen (Nordstrom)

I LOVE pointed-toe flats. So classy. The leather base of this flat is what makes it so unique, and I love them. I've had them for several years, and I intend on wearing them for years to come!

                       

Saturday's Story:

 

  

I'll end it off with a little story about what went down when Diana and I were taking these pictures. We first went to the colleges to shoot the first outfit. After, we went to the parking lot near the Packing House, and it took over 15 minutes to find a parking spot-there were absolutely no parking spots. We ate at the Junction, a Korean-Mexican Fusion food restaurant, for dinner. I won't thoroughly explain what we ate, but to keep it simple. it was palatable. The waiter handed us the beer and wine menu, and you can guess the rest. Their food is decently priced, but our check turned out a little over $40...Why? Let me just say...broke students should skip appetizers- I'll leave it at that and keep that in mind next time. *chuckles*

P.S. But... but... the truffle fries were so good. T.T I say it was worth it.  -Diana

Thanks for reading!